


The Things We Could Have, The Things We Could Be

by Aurum_Auri



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Alpha Victor Nikiforov, Badass Katsuki Yuuri, Badass Victor Nikiforov, Cat/Human Hybrids, Hurt/Comfort, I promise, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, M/M, Omega Katsuki Yuuri, Omegaverse, Past Rape/Non-con, Rape Recovery, Softer than it sounds, Swords & Sorcery, archer Yuuri, extremely filthy sweet missionary sex, it’s soft
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-04
Updated: 2019-08-04
Packaged: 2020-07-31 09:57:19
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 19,092
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20113234
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aurum_Auri/pseuds/Aurum_Auri
Summary: In a world of humans and cat-like people called felidae, omega felidae are often taken prisoner and sold as slaves in markets. Yuuri had once resigned himself to his fate, but a roving band of alpha felidae present him with other options. Free from his old life, Yuuri faces a choice, as well as the struggle to recover from his past and embrace the person he wants to be, no matter how hard it might be.





	The Things We Could Have, The Things We Could Be

**Author's Note:**

  * For [GenuineFirefly](https://archiveofourown.org/users/GenuineFirefly/gifts).

> For GenuineFirefly, who deserves this and so much more!! Thank you so much for being patient with me, my dear, and I wish you the best of luck over the next few months! I believe in you!!

The afternoon air was muggy and hot. Yuuri wiped sweat from his brow as he looked through the bars of the black steel cage. The market was vibrant and alive, but despite that, Yuuri felt hollow inside. So many young omega felidae were caged beside him, some of them never before exposed to the horrors that awaited them. They cried in their prisons as they were told stories by the older felidae. 

Yuuri didn’t have any tears left, not anymore. Not after the things he’d seen. There was a crack of a whip outside, and Yuuri didn’t flinch. 

The people streaming past, they were all human. Yuuri wasn’t surprised. He could smell them, Alphas, betas, reeking of smug superiority. 

Felidae were a rarity—Cat eared, tailed, graceful humanoids that superficially resembled humans. They were far and few. 

On the other end of the spectrum, humans had raw numbers and authority. The alpha and beta humans had all the power, and without the existence of omega humans, they turned their attentions to the felidae. They abducted Yuuri’s kind from their homes, kept them as slaves to satiate their sexual hungers. 

Unlike the alpha felidae, omega felidae were considered desirable sexual companions. The softness of their shapes and the slick, open wetness of their bodies made them pleasurable holes to fuck. Unfortunately, this was all most humans saw. They didn’t care about the pain. They didn’t care about the omegas weeping in the next cage over. 

One of the older felidae tried to shush them, gently murmuring soothing words. Yuuri knew her well. She had served in the same manner as he had, in the same palatial manor where a cruel alpha man lorded over his slaves with his family at his side. 

Yuko was a dear friend, close to his age, though a few years older than him. Yuuri was very sorry that soon, they would be separated and sold to pay their master’s gambling debts. He would miss her terribly. 

“Yuuri, please,” she said. “I can’t think of any more stories to tell them. Happy ones, not the horrible ones.”

Most of the others exchanged quiet looks, unwilling to draw the potential ire of the guards. One snobbish looking omega sneered down her nose. 

An omega Yuuri had never seen before leaned forward. He was plain looking, dark haired and a bit on the round side. Yuuri didn’t wonder why his master had sold off that one, but he felt immediately guilty at the thought. Pretty omegas were used up just as fast as ugly ones. 

The thick omega looked around conspiratorially. “There’s a story that you might not know.” The younger ones leaned in closer to listen. Even Yuuri pricked his pointed ears, trying to listen in. “The Rebel Bands.”

“A myth,” Yuuri murmured, immediately losing interest. 

The nameless felid shook his head. “They’re not. I’ve seen them! The Rebel Bands are groups of felidae just like you and me, led by Alphas. They go from town to town, freeing our kind from enslavement.”

The omegas ooh’ed and aah’ed appropriately. A few wiped their tears. Their hopes would be dashed soon, and Yuuri didn’t want to see the broken hearts that came next. 

“The last time I was sold, they came in! It was amazing! They had magic, weapons, they were so powerful! They managed to break half a dozen omegas out of their chains before barely escaping with their lives!”

A whip cracked close by, startling them all to silence. 

“Be quiet over there,” the guard growled. With narrowed eyes slitted through a helmet visor, the guard stood threateningly close. Yuuri could smell the stench of an alpha human. Disgusting. Truly sickening. 

The show of force was as much to keep external threats at bay as it was to keep the omega felidae inside their cages. It wouldn’t do for any to escape, after all. According to humans, their purpose in life was to serve. Yuuri could dream of freedom all he liked. It was never going to happen. 

They would leave behind the masters they knew, to be sold to new owners that were likely to be worse than the ones they left behind. Pretty stories couldn’t save them now. 

In the near distance, Yuuri could hear the gathering of humans. Their conversations congregated and hushed as one. There was a crack of a wooden hammer on a podium. The bidding would begin.

He watched as one by one, omegas were stripped from their cages, shackled individually and led through a curtain. When one came for Yuuri, he spat. 

The alpha human growled, wiping the globule of spittle from his face. “You little rat!” He grabbed for his whip, but another human stayed his hand. 

“Don’t harm the goods before sale, or the difference in price comes out of your pay,” a cool voice said. Yuuri narrowed his eyes. The auction overseer. Just like all the others Yuuri had ever seen, this one was slimy, ostentatiously dressed, and smiled smugly but with the incurable suggestion that they smelled something terrible. 

Yuuri hissed and wrestled as he was dragged onstage. His fighting was useless. They stood him on the stage, looking out over a jostling crowd of foul smelling humans. 

“This little treat is a feisty thing, a real troublemaker in the bedroom, but he’s got the tightest ass and smoothest fuck you could ever dream of. And just look at that face, ladies and gentlemen! You’ll want this little omega warming your bed for you, you can trust that.”

Yuuri’s lip curled in distaste. Warming a bed was worse than it sounded, especially when his old master took the idea literally and forbid him from leaving at all. He’d taken to chaining Yuuri to the headboard just to keep him from sneaking out. 

The bidding began. It happened so fast. In a blink, Yuuri was sold and collared, and then he was led off the stage. “If those rebel bands are coming, now would be a good time,” he muttered. 

The leash was yanked hard, choking the air from his throat. The chains on his wrists rattled noisily as Yuuri was led on. His new owner waited behind the curtain, smiling in a way that was almost pleasant. 

Yuuri knew that smile. No good came from that kind of smile. A whip suddenly cracked next to his face, and he let out a startled cry, flinching back. The alpha humans roared with laughter. 

Yuuri braced his claws in tight fists, stretching the chains as far as they’d reach. He would rather face death than see another owner try to _ break him in. _Of all the fates…

Yuuri was yanked along, pulled by a lead so tight it choked the air from his body. 

There was a crackle in the air. The hair on Yuuri’s arms seemed to stand on end, and the subtle change in air pressure left his tail lashing. Something was wrong. Yuuri dug his heels in the dirt, pricking his ears to listen more closely. 

His new master pulled, but Yuuri craned his neck to see. He heard screams in the distance. They grew louder, louder, suddenly close by. Then everything was engulfed in fire. 

The blast knocked them off balance, but the new master held the leash firm in his hands. People were running this way and that. Screams ripped the air. The heat on Yuuri’s skin made him nauseous, suffocated him and made it hard to take a breath. But when he did, he found he suddenly couldn’t move. 

Yuuri smelled _ them_. 

Bursts of magic lit the air, arcs of silvery steel swords slicing through smoke and fringed by a rain of arrows. Blood sprayed. Yuuri hacked and coughed, still fighting for freedom in the chaos. The glut of stimuli dizzied him. 

He caught glimpses of felidae moving through the smoke. “Don’t you dare,” the alpha human hissed. Yuuri narrowed his eyes. All his life, Yuuri had done as he was told. He bit his tongue no matter how badly it burned him inside and out. 

No more. He stopped pulling, and his master looked pleased. 

Then he leapt forward. Claws out, he let out a feral scream, aiming at the man’s eyes until his hands flew up, desperate to protect his face. Liquid heat splashed down his hands and wrists. 

The grip on the leash loosened. Yuuri turned tail and ran, sprinting through the streets in steel cuffs. There were whip cracks nearby and Yuuri wheeled around, circling back. He couldn’t stop coughing. He was backed into a corner. He traveled a little way down the alley, but it didn’t cut through. Dead end. Just his luck, of course.

Yuuri circled back, then was forced to stop. His master was on his tail, blocking the way back out, blood dripping down his face. “You little shit,” he spat, stalking closer. Yuuri growled. His whole body tensed, braced for an attack. 

A violet blade erupted through the human’s chest, no warning or whisper preceding it. Yuuri staggered back in shock. The blade twisted. Blood spurted from the master’s lips, from the gaping wound. A fountain-like gout sprayed the earth. 

The magic blade glittered for a moment before erupting into a thousand shards of purple diamond. Yuuri’s whole body seemed frozen in place, utterly impossible to move even a single muscle from where he stood. His new master fell to his knees, then to his face on the ground. 

Behind him, there stood a silver haired felid dressed in armor. Yuuri could smell the sudden surge of ice and magic and something indistinguishably _ alpha _ fill the air. The would-be savior stepped forward. A dashing smile broke over his face. “Need some help?”

Yuuri was struck speechless. “Can you do anything about these?” he said at last, holding up his wrists where they were still chained together. The alpha sauntered closer, hips swinging enticingly, tail curling. His arm swept out, and he destroyed the cuffs in a burst of magic. 

“Come on with me, I’ll get you out of here. Pull back!” the man yelled. “Back! We have as many as we can get, fall back!” Whoops and yells filled the air. The battles seemed to turn on their heels, the invaders now fleeing. 

Yuuri broke into a run. It was senseless, the chaos that filled the air. He swam through bodies. 

He yanked a cloak from a passerby’s shoulders and pulled it over him, tossing the hood up to cover his pointed ears. There were yells behind him, but he was able to blend in with it. He fought to keep his tail still between his legs as he weaved through the crowd, following that strange, silver-haired man.

They were followed by soldiers outside the gates, but the felid swept his arm out, and large bolts of wicked pink magic sliced the air, punching them in their chests and leaving them to crumple. Yuuri ran a little faster. 

Who had made it out? Would Yuko be safe? He could only hope, in the end, that the chaos was enough for her to join them. He could only hope she would make it out alive. If she didn’t…

Freedom would always be a price paid in blood, steel, and loss. They all knew it. He could break down for her when he was safe. 

They ran. For hours, they ran, breathless and unable to talk in the mindless drive to escape the soldiers bearing down on them. Carts drawn by horses pulled out of a break in the trees. 

The group loaded in. Yuuri followed the silver felid, close on the stranger’s heel. There was one last whip crack, this time directed to the horses pulling the carts. Yuuri’s heart wouldn’t slow down. This was crazy, he could hardly believe it. He looked around the cart, where three alphas and two omegas had crammed inside with them.

Yuuri’s rescuer was pressed against Yuuri’s side, so close that all Yuuri could smell was the heavenly mix of floral cedar and winter mint that made up his scent. 

“Where are we going?” Yuuri breathed. 

“Waypoint,” the silver-haired felid said. He flashed Yuuri a beautiful smile. “Make sure everyone is okay and accounted for before we head home, double check we weren’t followed. I’m Victor, by the way. Victor Nikiforov.”

“Yuuri Katsuki.” Yuuri’s voice was rough. 

“That’s Chris,” Victor said, gesturing to a cloaked alpha across the way, who pulled back the hood. Sitting there was a grinning man, his dark ears tipped in gold and framed by a head of golden curls. Victor went around the carriage, pointing out the other two alphas, a redhead named Mila and a dark-haired, dejected-looking fellow named Georgi. 

The two omegas piped up with their names. 

“What’s wrong with him?” Yuuri asked, pointing at Georgi. 

Victor reached across to pat Georgi’s shoulder. “She didn’t come back, did she?” Georgi broke into sobs. Victor just kept patting his shoulder. “He fell in love with an omega, but she broke it off and ran away. She was captured and sent to be sold. I worried this would happen.”

“You broke us out, even though you knew she wouldn’t come with you?” Yuuri asked. 

Victor smiled softly. “Had to save someone, at least. I can’t just leave omegas to suffer. Even if it was a lost cause, at least we could free people. At least they would be safe, if they wanted.”

Yuuri’s heart fluttered in his chest. The words stirred inside him, lit a fire in his chest that burned brighter with every smile and well-meaning platitude. For a moment, Yuuri’s world seemed to turn on its head. 

Sure, he’d dreamed of freedom. What felid hadn’t, after all? But they’d been hollow dreams, as much substance to them as any other dream. 

For the first time in Yuuri’s life, he suddenly felt as though the world had shifted. There was _ potential._ He could do anything. He could be free. He could run far, far away from here, somewhere where omegas could live in peace. He would never have to spread his legs for a human. He could do _ anything. _

His world had once felt so tiny, and in a span of ten seconds, it grew. All the possibilities. There were flowers out there, blue skies, and somewhere, there was even a sea, just like the one he’d known when he was small. 

“Yuuri- are you okay?” Victor asked, sounding startled. 

Yuuri laughed, realizing he had started crying at some point. He wiped away the tears, breathing Victor’s scent in deep enough to fill his lungs to bursting. “I’m better than okay. I’m happy. I don’t think I’ve been happy in years. Thank you. Thank you, Victor, so much.”

Victor looked startled, but his expression warmed. “I’m glad I could help.”

The cart let them off at the waypoint. Victor stepped away, rounding everyone up and checking to make sure that everyone was unharmed. There were a few minor injuries, but the hasty retreat had been well-timed. 

A familiar face ran up to him, and suddenly Yuuri found himself brought low by the force of a hug. “Yuuri! You made it!”

“Yuko!” Yuuri breathed in the familiar spiced apple scent, unable to believe it. “You’re safe! I was so worried.”

“I’m so happy we all got out,” Yuko said, almost in tears. “I still can’t believe it. I don’t understand how it’s possible.”

“He’s amazing,” Yuuri whispered, looking reverently up at Victor. 

One of the omegas stepped forward, beaming. He had been driving the cart, and now he was stretching his legs and walking around. “He is, isn’t he? He’s rescued more omegas than anyone else. Saved me from a nasty pinch a few years ago. There’s a reason we’ve got Victor in charge. I’m Phichit, by the way. I help out with the raids.” 

“I’m Yuuri. You.. you help?” Yuuri asked, startled. “I thought only alphas did raids.”

“It’s pretty much all alphas going in, but they’d be useless without us. A clean getaway is _ vital, _” Phichit confided, grinning. “Hey, I think we’re headed out soon. When we get to camp, you both can find me if you need anything.”

“Thank you,” Yuuri said. He turned to Yuko. “We’ll find each other when we stop, right?”

Yuko gave him a quick hug before they split up. 

He almost couldn’t believe where he was right now. Victor smiled at Yuuri as they reboarded the carts. He and Yuko were safe and sound for the first time in Yuuri’s life. Since the day of his capture, Yuuri had never once felt this at ease. And it was all thanks to Victor. 

Yuuri leaned forward. He started up at Victor like he had hung the stars in the sky, and for all Yuuri cared, maybe Victor had. “Please, please, let me help too.”

“Wha-what?” Victor sputtered. 

“I want to help you in raids. I want to fight back.”

Victor looked startled, eyes wide and sparkling. “We always need more able bodies. I’d love to have you. Do you have any weapons training?”

“Well, not really. I never even used my claws before today,” Yuuri said sheepishly. He looked out the cart window to see the lush grasslands rolling by outside the windows. A sea of green waved in the wind. It was more beautiful than anything Yuuri had ever seen before. He snapped back to Victor, leaning forward. “But I want to help! I want to learn. I don’t want to sit on the sidelines when there are others like me out there.”

Victor beamed. “I’d love to teach you a few things. We can try a few weapons out and see what suits you? We should be at the camp by nightfall. Take a few days to settle in, and then feel free to visit me. We can find something for you. I would love to have you at my side.”

“Of course!” Yuuri said. 

“I’m looking forward to teaching you, Yuuri,” Victor said warmly, and his scent swelled in the cabin of the carriage. 

Yuuri couldn’t stop smiling. 

It seemed too good to be true. The night air was heavy with stars as the carriages rolled to a stop. More felidae gathered around than Yuuri had seen in all his life, all ages, omega and alpha alike. “Welcome to Sanctuary!” someone called. 

Yuuri took it all in with a stunned, sharp breath. He’d only ever known the faces of omegas his age, never seen omegas in their youth or old age. But here they were, and all of them greeted Victor like a returning hero. And, Yuuri was more than certain, he was. 

Yuuri shifted on his heels, looking around. The other new omegas had congregated close. About a dozen of them had made it out, besides Yuuri and Yuko, and the dark haired omega who had told stories back at the markets. Nishigori, was his name? Yuuri hoped it was right. 

Phichit came back around after a few moments. “This way, everyone! I’m Phichit! Plenty of time for introductions in the next few days, so let’s get you all set up!”

Yuuri and the other omegas were shown to a temporary housing building. “New homes are constantly being built,” Phicht said, “but it’s on an as-needed basis, typically. And since so many of you made it out at once, we’ve got a little system in place to make things go a little more smoothly while we get more permanent places for all of you.”

The omegas chattered excitedly. They had nothing but the clothes on their backs and the scars on their necks and wrists from chains. The thought of their own home was more than any of them could imagine. 

“Newcomers can always stay in the community house. If you make friends in the camp, they might invite you to stay with them. Of course, you can always stay in the community house until a home of your own is finished!” 

After omegas claimed their beds, Yuuri turned out to the fledgling city of felidae that was taking root. It was more than imagination could have ever conceived. It beggared belief, that something like this could be real. There were so many faces here, it would be impossible to remember them all. A veritable city had made this its home, nestled in a crook between two mountain peaks, deep in a forest. 

The first two days were absolute madness. Yuuri was sent flying between one errand and the next. There were always tasks that needed doing, people to be fed, and a society to maintain. The elderly and infirm were cared for, the children watched over. Yuuri was so busy he could barely take a moment to himself, and the size of his new home made it easy to get lost. 

But for once, the level of chaos was deeply satisfying, rather than stressful. For once in his life, he felt like his actions were for a greater good. Even if he got lost, it didn’t grate the same way it did when he was lost in some human’s manor. 

And yet, something itched inside of him, still unsatisfied. Something wanted more. 

He saw Victor in the distance almost a full week later, and he dropped what he was doing to sprint over. It was the first time he’d seen Victor since he’d arrived. He wasn’t about to miss this chance. 

“Victor!” he said. A sudden wave of fear struck him as Victor turned around. Victor was their leader. Would he even have time to bother with Yuuri? He had countless felidae to save and oversee. 

But then Victor’s face broke into a beaming smile. “Yuuri! How are you settling in? Have you put any thought into how you’d like to help?”

“I… honestly I’m not sure,” Yuuri admitted. “I don’t even know what there is.” There was more color in Victor’s face today, Yuuri realized. He hadn’t realized Victor had been so pale when they first met, a little drawn in a way. This Victor was sparkling with life. 

“Well, no matter what, it’s good to know how to keep yourself safe. Let’s go to the armory and try a few things out!” There was a hop in Victor’s step, and he broke into an excited sprint. Yuuri raced after him, unable to stop smiling. 

The armory was a larger building full of all kinds of devices of war. Yuuri could see rough hewn versions of weapons that rich masters kept on walls as decorations. Instead of being ornamental, these looked well used. Victor passed Yuuri a steel sword. 

“Give this a few swings. Let me know how it feels.”

It was heavier than it looked. Yuuri took a step back, cautiously looking around him. He lifted it, wrist shaking. He slashed the air gracelessly and grimaced. 

“Not a fan?” Victor said. “Don’t worry, swords aren’t as nice as they are in storybooks, and we’ve got a lot of other things you can test out. What about daggers? Close combat, but with some throwing capabilities if you’ve got a knack for it.” 

Victor spun a dagger on his palm, grasping the blade and offering the hilt to Yuuri. Yuuri took it. It was much easier to hold than the sword was, shorter than most kitchen knives and wickedly sharp. Yuuri jabbed the air. 

Victor nodded. “Nothing is set in stone. If you end up not liking something, we can always trade it out, too.”

“This isn’t too bad,” Yuuri said. “What else is there?”

Victor took him on a tour through the building. Yuuri kept the dagger in hand. His mind kept straying back to an image in his head— the memory of a glittering magic blade erupting through his master’s chest. The weapons were fascinating, but nothing held a candle to the thought of real magic. 

Victor pulled a graceful bow off the wall with a flourish. “If you want some range, this is your best bet. I knew archers who could nail a target from hundreds of yards away. You’re only limited by your skill.” 

Yuuri sucked in a breath. Now that fascinated him. “I just pull this back?” he asked. Victor showed him how to hold it and Yuuri copied the grip. The bowstring resisted, but Yuuri was strong enough to draw it back fully. 

“Be careful when you release, or it’ll get your arm. Not fun.” Yuuri nodded, and he loosed the string without an arrow. It sent a low thrill through him. 

“This is it,” Yuuri said, looking at Victor. “I want to learn this.”

Victor’s smile widened. “An excellent choice. There are some targets around the back. I’ll teach you everything you need to know.” And teach, he did. He showed Yuuri to a range, giving him the basics of posture, grip, and more. 

The first few arrows went wide, and Victor’s bright, encouraging laughter only drove Yuuri to focus his attentions. He loosed the arrow, and with a low thump, it impacted the outer edge of the target. Yuuri let out a sound of delight. 

“Good! Try again! Keep your arm steady. Fire between breaths, between beats of your heart.” The next shot impacted a little closer to the center. As the hours slipped past, they chatted. 

“Can you use all the weapons in the armory?” Yuuri asked as he retrieved the arrows from the ground around the target. He braced against the target and pulled one of the arrowheads from the straw-stuffed pad. 

Victor, collecting a few other scattered arrows, shrugged. “I’m proficient in a decent number, but I’m no expert by any means. Chris is an ace at archery. If you ever have any questions, he’d be more than happy to help you. But if I’m around and not busy, you can ask me anything you’d like.”

“You prefer magic though, right?” Yuuri asked. His eyes were wide. He’d never seen a magic user in person before Victor. They were rare, and very little was known. 

Victor’s grin was glittering and bright. “I do. Tricky stuff, magic. But it’s dangerous, too. It’s wild, hard to control, like trying to tame a wild beast. If one isn’t careful, it’ll backfire and kill them.”

“I didn’t realize it was so difficult,” Yuuri said, sucking in a breath. 

Victor offered a crooked grin. “Difficult, yes, but satisfying, too. It’s worth the long recovery time.”

“Recovery… you were gone a while when we returned,” Yuuri said. 

“Using that much magic takes a toll on the body. It takes time to recover fully,” Victor said. “But some rest is all I need.”

Yuuri nodded. “You sound like you’ve had a lot of experience with it. How long have you been doing this?”

“Years,” Victor said. “I don’t remember how it all began, exactly. It didn’t start out as something organized. Humans took a few omegas from my village. The alphas gathered around and made a plan to get them back. It didn’t end well. People got hurt. I wasn’t about to let the humans walk all over us.”

“Something had to be done,” Yuuri said.

“My thoughts exactly. We rallied, made a new strategy, and it sort of took on a life of its own. We’ll just keep freeing omegas, as much as we can. As long as we can save someone, there’s always a reason to keep going out. It’s why we do this.”

“It’s why I want to help,” Yuuri said fiercely. Victor smiled. They walked back to the edge of the shooting range together, and Yuuri raised the bow. The whistle of wind through the fletching was like music. 

Training was just the beginning. 

Victor was a busy man, but he made time to see Yuuri. They didn’t always go to the shooting range, though it quickly became Yuuri’s new home. He spent more time on that span of dirt than he did anywhere else, firing arrow after arrow until his arms were too tired to lift. Chris was extremely helpful in this regard, giving good advice on posture and helping Yuuri work through a kink he developed with his shoulders. 

Sometimes Victor had Yuuri follow him around the camp, keeping him company while he ran errands. When Yuuri was too tired to train, this was his second favorite place to go. The camp was always busy, and the days and weeks passed by faster than Yuuri could have ever dreamed. 

The first few days were strange. The first time Victor looped his arm around Yuuri’s shoulder, Yuuri let out a short scream and fell to the ground, startled by the sudden contact. Victor blinked at him. “Are you alright?”

“I- sorry, I wasn’t expecting that,” Yuuri coughed, trying to act like he hadn’t just screeched like a banshee. His heart was racing. “Don’t mind me.”

“Was it because I grabbed you?” Victor asked, looking alarmed. “Did I do something wrong?”

“No, no-” Yuuri scrambled to say. Victor didn’t need to know the truth. “It’s fine, don’t worry about it, you just startled me is all-”

“I’m just tactile, I’m sorry, but I can stop-” Victor’s face was flushed cherry red and his eyes sparkled so brightly with alarm that Yuuri couldn’t help but let out a small laugh. 

“Please, Victor, don’t worry about it. You startled me. But if it makes you feel better, we could try… something simpler first?” He held out his pinky finger, and Victor beamed. 

“That works with me!” Victor said, looping his little finger around Yuuri’s.

After that, it became a common sight to see the two of them walking side by side, their pinkies linked. Yuuri felt his chest swell a little every time Victor offered him that beaming smile and extended his finger to Yuuri. 

Their daily routine became commonplace over time. 

“Seems like you and Victor are growing close,” Phicht commented one day. 

Yuuri shrugged. They were escaping the heat of the day inside Phichit’s home, which was shady and cool, the windows thrown open to encourage a breeze. “He seems… kind of lonely,” Yuuri admitted. “Sometimes when I see him standing alone, before he notices anyone there, he looks… almost sad.”

“Maybe he likes you,” Phichit said. His ears flicked slyly, tail curling in the air with a smug kind of knowledge. “I think he just misses you.”

Yuuri let out an indignant sound. “No more than anyone else, and you know it. He looks like that any time he’s alone, not just when I’m gone.”

“Maybe he is lonely,” Phichit said. “I guess I never thought about it. I only ever see him surrounded by other people. He’s always so busy, though.”

“He says he doesn’t mind me joining him but… I’m always scared I’m in the way. I want to help more.”

Phichit laughed softly. “Victor would be the last person to say you’re in the way. The other day, he was telling me how much of a help you are to him. I wouldn’t worry about that.”

Yuuri looked away. “Maybe it’s silly…”

“You care about him, don’t you?” Phichit asked. He cocked his head. 

“I mean, of course I do! He saved me! He keeps this village together. Who wouldn’t care about Victor? The others care, too.” 

“I mean, more than that,” Phichit said. “The way your eyes follow him. The way you smile when you say his name. It’s the same thing I see when Yuko and Takashi are together. Kitten love.” 

Yuuri looked away. “A small crush doesn’t change what I want. And I want to help this camp. And… anyway, Victor has more important things to deal with than me.”

“Aha! You admit it!”

“Only a little!” Yuuri screeched. But Phichit was already doing a victory dance across the floor. Yuuri couldn’t help but laugh. “You’re terrible!”

“I’m the best friend ever, I’ll have you know!” Phichit said. Yuuri was laughing harder than ever. A knock on the door interrupted them. “Come in!” Phichit called. 

Victor stepped inside, smiling. “I thought you two would be here. Sorry to interrupt the fun. I was just wondering if Yuuri would like to join me on a visit to Celestino’s and a few other places.”

“He’d love to come,” Phichit said automatically. Yuuri elbowed him, making him squawk. Phichit laughed and jabbed him back. 

Yuuri smiled up at Victor. “Sure, I’d love to join you.”

“Excellent!” Victor was smiling wide, and it made Yuuri’s heart beat faster than ever. He scrambled to his feet, tail lashing the air. 

“Bye Yuuri! See you later?”

“Later,” Yuuri confirmed, before following Victor out the door. 

“You and Phichit seem close,” Victor said. 

Yuuri hummed. “I’ve never been able to really have many friends before. I was always afraid they would be torn away from me, or hurt, or killed. But I think also Phichit could befriend anyone if he so chose.”

“He does have that air about him, yes,” Victor said with a laugh. “Even the rocks themselves would crowd around him.” 

They walked in companionable silence for a time, until they arrived at the small house that served as their destination. 

“Ciao ciao, Victor, Yuuri!” A cheerful voice called from inside. Together, they approached the open front door. A happy, slightly more mature felid was seated inside, sipping on a cup of tea. 

“Afternoon, Celestino,” Victor said. “What have you got for us today?” 

“New reports on soldier movements, and times and dates of upcoming slave auctions. I’ve got them compiled into a report for you to read at your convenience,” Celestino said, passing over a thick, sealed envelope. “Care to stay for a drink? I think I’ve got something stronger in the back,” he added with a wink. 

“We would love to, but we have a few more stops this afternoon,” Victor said with a smile. “Maybe next time.”

“You and your shadow are always so busy,” Celestino said. “I do appreciate your hard work. Let me know if there’s anything else I can do for you, Victor! And Yuuri, you keep that boy from overworking himself, okay?”

“I’ll do what I can,” Yuuri said wryly, but he was smiling. He glanced over at Victor, and his heart seemed to swell at the sight of those sparkling, blue eyes. 

Even in the calmest of moments, even as the days and weeks passed, it still made Yuuri’s chest tighten and soar when he looked at Victor. Time was a luxury Yuuri had never been able to afford. He had so much of it now, and somehow, getting to spend every moment he could with Victor gave the world a dreamlike quality of perfection. 

“Thank you for this. We’ll see you tomorrow, okay?” Victor said. 

“Bye, Celestino,” Yuuri said. 

“Ciao! And Yuuri, you come by if you need anything, okay?”

“Thank you, I will,” Yuuri said. Victor beamed and offered his pinky finger. Yuuri hooked his through, and followed Victor out the door. A crush, perhaps, but one Yuuri felt innocent enough taking comfort in. Another week of bliss. Another month. How long would things feel so perfect? 

Every single day, they’d spend in one another’s company, and every day Yuuri could feel himself settling more firmly into this life here. 

Yuuri awoke each morning feeling fresher than ever. Sometimes his nightmares came calling, plaguing him with visions of the past, but he pushed them out of his mind with deliberate precision. The world was better now. He hit the target with his arrows more than ever. Yuuri was feeling good. 

Victor gave the world a new life Yuuri had never imagined. He was smart, funny, and absolutely adorable in rare moments of vulnerability. When he spoke, Yuuri hung on his every word. 

“Are you free today?” Victor asked one afternoon, after Yuuri had tired himself out on the range. Yuuri smiled and nodded. “Have you left the village at all yet?”

Yuuri shook his head. “I’ve been too busy to go anywhere. And plus… I honestly haven’t seen a reason to. It’s nice here.” He offered Victor a smile. 

Victor beamed. “Then have I got something to show you. Come with me.” Victor led him to a small inn and ordered two lunches to go, and he placed them in a woven basket. Yuuri followed, curious. Victor led him back out and into the woods. 

The path wove between towering oak trees, meandering its way over small hills and through little valleys. Yuuri was struck by how much he’d changed in the time since he’d arrived at this camp. When he worked for the masters, his body was soft, somewhere between willowy and doughy. 

The few weeks had worked him hard, and no matter how sore he had been, he’d found himself eager to start the next day. He was stronger now, and the hills were nothing for him. The Yuuri of a few weeks ago would have been winded a mile back. 

But Victor and Yuuri kept apace, and when Victor offered his hand, Yuuri took it. His tail curled. Victor smiled. “So what’s out here?” Yuuri asked. 

“Surprise,” Victor said. “I hope you’re hungry.”

They walked another mile or so down the path. The trees soon broke, revealing a beautiful lake, the water glittering in the sunlight. The river shore was sandy, like the fringes of ocean Yuuri distantly recalled in his memories. 

Yuuri sucked in a breath. It was more beautiful than words could describe. The midday sun made the water sparkle. Birds sang from the trees. Victor spread the blanket and opened the basket, settling on the ground near the water’s edge. Yuuri sat beside him, too awed for words.

“This… this is amazing.”

“It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” Victor said, looking out over the water. “Back when this all started, when it was just me, Chris, Georgi, and a few others, I would come here to be alone. To think about what I was doing. How I could do it better. How I could save others. It used to be so, so important to me.”

“Used to be?” Yuuri said, cocking his head. 

Victor picked at his food, not quite eating. “For a while, I lost sight of that. My heart wasn’t in it. I didn’t know why I was doing this. But I saw you out there, chained up and _ still fighting._ I saw the smile on your face when I broke your cuffs. You look so beautiful without a collar, you know. Free.”

Yuuri touched his neck, remembering the weight of it. “I reminded you? I didn’t do anything,” he said. 

Victor smiled. “But you did. You reminded me why I do this. Why I fight. It’s not just keeping felidae safe from humans. I want to give them a place they can call home. And seeing you, seeing the way you take to my home and make it yours… it makes me really happy.”

Yuuri flushed. “A lot of others think the same thing I do. They worship you, you know. We all do. You gave us back our lives. I don’t think there’s any way we can ever thank you enough.”

“Just… seeing you smile. That’s enough,” Victor said. 

“I want to help,” Yuuri said earnestly. “A smile isn’t enough for me. I want to give back.”

Victor hummed. He took a bite of his lunch, before setting it aside. He rose back onto his feet, offering Yuuri a hand. “Come on, there are some berries nearby that are absolutely _ amazing_, you have to try them.”

Victor’s impish grin set Yuuri smiling too. Like children, they raced to the fringes of the forest. The berry bushes there were heavy with small red fruits the size of Yuuri’s thumb claw. He plucked one and bit into it, tasting the way the juice exploded on his tongue. 

Victor gleefully stuffed his face, and Yuuri edged him out, stealing a berry from his fingers with a laugh. Victor playfully slapped him with his tail and swiped the berry back, but fed it to Yuuri instead of eating it himself. 

They ate themselves sick on the berries, until their mouths and teeth were stained red with the berry juice. They sat beside each other in the dirt, feeding each other when they couldn’t take another bite themselves. 

“Yuuri,” Victor murmured. “Tomorrow…” His eyelashes fluttered against his cheek, his eyes downcast. When he looked up, he was beautiful in a way Yuuri had never seen him before. It was softer than usual, the hard edges smoothed. The juice smeared on his lips and cheeks made him look younger. It was so easy to forget that he was several years older than Yuuri, so much more experienced. 

Yuuri’s heart raced. Victor leaned in closer. Yuuri did too, watching the way Victor’s lips pouted a little. He almost couldn’t breathe as their faces drew in close. Victor smelled so sweetly of berries and fresh cedar. Yuuri closed his eyes, his body suddenly growing tense and tight. 

Horror flared inside him before he could stop it, memories of hands on his skin he didn’t want. He flinched. 

Victor pulled away, and Yuuri could feel the sudden disappointment bubble inside him. He had thought Victor would kiss him, and he didn’t know if he was more upset that Victor had pulled away or that Yuuri was unable to drive the memories of his masters out of his mind. 

Victor looked away, up at the sky. The sun was slinking toward the horizon, slowly but surely. “I’m sorry. We need to go back. It’s getting late, and there’s so much to do still.”

“Right,” Yuuri said quietly, wiping the juice from his cheeks. How silly he was. Yuuri was just a foolish young omega with scars. Victor had a village full of felidae to run and keep safe. They walked back, and the quiet was almost painful now. “Thank you for showing me the lake,” Yuuri said as they made it back to the village. “It was… nice.”

“I’m glad you enjoyed it,” Victor said, more genuine now than he was before. His eyes fluttered again, and there was something sad at the edges, something that pulled Yuuri’s heart. Something he couldn’t identify. “Goodnight.”

“Goodnight,” Yuuri said. Yuuri slunk back into the community center, pretending he wasn’t upset. 

It was silent in there. Yuuri noticed one of the previously occupied beds were suddenly empty, and other people were staring at it, many with undisguised curiosity and repulsion.

“Where did they go?” Yuuri asked. 

It was Yuko who told him. Her voice was barely a whisper as she explained. “She… well, she ran away. Back to the slavers.” The slavers, the masters, the people who had beaten and abused them endlessly their whole lives.

“What? Why?” Yuuri asked. The others looked away. Yuko looked to Nishigori. He shrugged, but it was a helpless thing. So far out of his control that he could barely understand it himself. 

“Do you think humans will interrogate her about how she escaped?” Yuko asked.

Yuuri’s blood ran cold. If she told the slavers about the felid raiders, it would make things more dangerous the next time they attacked. Yuuri hissed, his tail bushing slightly. Victor needed to know. But Yuuri didn’t want to face him. Yuuri swallowed his panic. It was fine. It was fine. 

Yuuri avoided everyone, not just Victor. He did his tasks with minimal interaction. The next morning, Yuuri went to the range to train. He found it empty. In fact, the whole town seemed to be sleeping, with only a few people here and there. Yuuri fired alone at the range until his arms were sore. 

Chris never arrived. Curiously, many of the alphas were gone. Several of the omegas were gone, too. Yuuri found his way to Phichit’s house, but Phichit wasn’t there. Yuuri went to find Yuko. “Where is everyone?” he asked, alarmed. Yuko shook her head. She knew as much as Yuuri did. 

He spotted a fresh mark on Yuko’s throat, and that alone was almost enough to distract him from his quest. Nishigori, on the other side of the room, sported an identical one. 

Yuko gave him a little smile. “It’s not often omegas bond with omegas, I know, but he makes me happy,” she said, by way of answer. Yuuri stammered out his congratulations, almost too surprised to speak. 

Yuuri didn’t find out where everyone had gone until much later that day. The others had gone on a raid. They had left Yuuri behind. 

Yuuri felt like he’d been slapped in the face. So yesterday afternoon with Victor, was it for nothing? Would he have even told Yuuri about his plans? 

He didn’t even offer to take Yuuri with him. Yuuri had been training for this. He didn’t expect to go in immediately, but even just to be like Phichit, driving one of the carts to get the others to safety. Was all his hard work for nothing?

Yuuri could feel his glass heart shatter. 

It was three days before Victor returned. The carriages rolled into the village in the quiet of the evening, and everything seemed to come alive the way it had before they’d left. But Yuuri felt lifeless and hollow. He sat on the wooden roof of the community building, watching the shaky few omegas unload themselves and take their first looks around. 

And there, there in the midst of it all, was Victor, looking pale, drawn, and limping his way to his house on the hill. He didn’t come out during the next few days, sleeping off the magic he’d burned. Yuuri was furious, but so painfully relieved. He didn’t know which hurt more. 

At night, when Yuuri couldn’t sleep, he fired arrow after arrow into one of the targets. The soft sound of impact settled his mind, but it came screaming back when he laid back down. One night, another, another. 

Chris seemed to see something wrong, from the way Yuuri spent those nights firing at all hours, at any free moment, heedless of the pain in his arms, of the way his body ached so bad he could barely move. 

“Mad about something?” Chris asked. Yuuri looked away. At least if he told Chris, they’d know. He explained the runaway omega and how scared he had been that it would get the others hurt or worse. 

Chris didn’t look surprised. “It’s not the first time an omega went back,” he said. “We’ll be as careful as we can, but it’s hard to be perfectly safe no matter what we do. Part of the risks of what we do.”

“But why would she do this?” Yuuri said. “Why did she leave?”

Chris let out a deep breath. “Some of the omegas we save, they’re tainted by their past. They can’t ever recover. They come here and they’re scared, alone, and lost. Some of them, they’d rather go back to something they can predict, or be with family, than stay here.”

“Oh,” Yuuri said, sick to his stomach. He turned to fiercely stare at the target, letting another arrow loose. It thwacked noisily, barely hitting the target. 

“That’s not the only thing bothering you, is it?” Chris asked. “Do you want to tell me?”

“Don’t want to talk,” Yuuri said. He loosed the arrow, and it hit the edge of the target. His hand was shaking so badly that the next went wild. 

“I think you need a break,” Chris said. “You almost hit Georgi just now. Does it have something to do with Victor?”

“And _ why_,” Yuuri said, loosing another arrow, one after the other, rapid fire, “would Victor have anything to do with it.”

“You two were joined at the hip a week ago,” Chris said with a shrug. “You told me about the missing omega, not him. It just seems strange to me you haven’t said a word about him. Just because he can’t leave his bed doesn’t mean you can’t go see him, you know.”

“I don’t care where he is or what he’s doing,” Yuuri said icily. But guilt did prickle at the edges of his kind. 

Chris shook his head. “You aren’t even going to see him?” he asked. “What happened?”

Yuuri could feel his body trembling violently. “I wanted to go,” he said in a small voice. It broke like a dam, all the feelings inside him. One little admission, and suddenly he couldn’t hold it back. “I wanted to go with you guys. I wanted to help, and Victor knew that. So why didn’t he tell me you were leaving?” Yuuri whispered. His eyes burned, pricking hot with tears. 

Chris looked stunned, at a loss for words. “I- I don’t know. You’d have to ask him. I’m sorry, Yuuri.”

Yuuri shook his head, tears falling faster than he could wipe them away. “I thought you two were teaching me so I could help. I’m sorry, I’m sorry I’m overreacting. I should just go. I don’t know why I got my hopes up like that.” He turned on his heel and left.

“Wait, Yuuri! Yuuri!” Chris called. Yuuri walked faster. 

He had thought Victor liked him, trusted him. He showed Yuuri the lake, the berries, how to shoot a bow and arrow. So what, then, was the point of it all? And the next one, whenever Victor left for that. Would he leave Yuuri behind, too?

They needed to talk. Yuuri knew it, and he didn’t want to. He didn’t want to hear the words from Victor’s mouth, the reason he didn’t want to bring Yuuri along. But Yuuri was hurt more deeply than any master’s whip could ever strike. He felt gashed open and raw. 

“Yuuri!” Chris yelled, so far away. Yuuri looked back, shocked Chris had ran all this way. He was short on breath as he pulled to a stop beside Yuuri, bending double as he caught his breath back. “Yuuri, we’re leaving… again… tonight. You didn’t hear it from me. I don’t know why Victor didn’t tell you the first time, but you at least deserve to know when we go.” 

Yuuri was stunned into silence. “Thank you,” he said quietly. Chris offered him a smile. 

“You work harder than anyone else out on that range. If my other students were half as committed as you, they’d be twice the shots they are now. I’m sorry it was like this, Yuuri. Victor’s my friend, and has been for years. I’m sure he’s got a reason.”

Victor had a reason. Yuuri knew it perfectly well, and he was going to be sick. 

Victor knew Yuuri was tainted goods. It was obvious from the moment Yuuri shied away from Victor’s touch, too scared to let Victor kiss him. No matter how badly Yuuri wished Victor had taken him in his arms, there was a hesitation, a lingering trauma from his time under masters’ whips. 

Yuuri was _ scared. _He was weak, too weak to give up that vulnerable part inside of him and too weak to dare to fight for the things he wanted. And while Yuuri was off being a coward, Victor was going to get himself killed. 

Unacceptable. Victor was still bedridden from his magic, and he would be leaving tonight anyway, knowing full well he still needed more time. He had said it himself— magic was dangerous. 

There was no way Yuuri was going to shy away. He stormed down the narrow streets, until he found Phichit’s little house. He knocked, and Phichit yelled to come in. Yuuri let himself through the door. Phichit was finishing packing himself a travel bag. 

“I need your help,” Yuuri said.

* * *

In the dead of night, the carriages rolled out. Yuuri clutched his bow in his hands. Phichit’s carriage was otherwise empty, and Yuuri’s nerves were starting to creep up on him. 

He’d seen Victor, just a glimpse of him when Victor stumbled into another carriage. In the dim firelight of the torches around the village, Yuuri had seen Victor’s drawn face. He pale and shaky as he lifted himself into the carriage, but his expression was set. He was going to get hurt. 

Yuuri wasn’t going to let that happen. 

Fear soured in the back of his throat. He could taste his nerves like bitter almonds. But he’d already made his choice, no matter what he feared would happen. Yuuri couldn’t afford to think about failure, or his body would begin to tremble violently and his mind would turn to useless slush. 

Victor was barely strong enough to stand. He was in no shape to be raiding the morning slave markets like this. A little panel to the front slid open, revealing Phichit’s face poking into the carriage. “You should try and sleep, if you can,” Phichit said. “It’s going to be a long night.”

“I’ll stay up,” Yuuri said in a rough voice. “Keep you company.”

Phichit smiled. “If you want to hop up here, the panel is wide enough to slide through. I won’t tell.”

Yuuri clambered up, breathing the fresh air deep into his lungs. It steadied him a bit, prepared him for what was to come. He had to keep Victor safe no matter what happened. He would not let Victor get hurt. Yuuri was sick of his fears. Yuuri would not be a hindrance or a flight risk. 

Dawn broke, pale and streaking pink and orange over the sky. They stopped outside a city’s outermost reaches, the little sprawl of houses and businesses giving way to a sloping hill that led to a forest. 

Yuuri had forgotten the stench of cities. And though they may have been a few miles outside, that stench was palpable even from here. They crept slowly closer to the humans, and the smell only worsened. 

Yuuri had never realized before how sweet the forest village smelled. Humans reeked something awful, but Yuuri had never once thought about it. It seemed obvious now. 

Victor’s voice rang out. “The plan is the same as it always is. Wait for the signal from the archers. Chris will shoot a flaming arrow into the market. When the fire catches, that’s when we go in. Get in, get out. No unnecessary risks. Get as many omegas as you can but not if it gets you killed. We can always go back. The archers watch the raiders’ backs. Trust one another and we’ll get through.”

He looked so pale. His voice trembled faintly. Yuuri could see the damage magic had done to him, the drawn lines on his face that his pretty silver hair couldn’t fully hide. Yuuri’s alpha was unwell. 

They broke off, waiting in small clusters for the market to grow busier. From their perch in the brush, they could see over the tops of the shorter buildings on the edge of town. Yuuri hid further up the hill, just out of sight. 

The whole town was visible from here. He could see the cages where the omegas were waiting, and the ramshackle stage where they would be sold.

A single, flaming arrow flew through the skies. Chris held his head high. Everyone was silent as it arced upwards and began to fly downwards once more, exploding with a spray of pitch onto a tarp strung over a wagon. 

It burst into flames which quickly began to spread. Panic gripped the market as people tried to put the sudden fire out. Then Victor and the others broke into a sprint, the archers settling more firmly into their positions. 

As the group broke through the first line of houses, the half dozen archers began to fire once more, on Chris’s command. Yuuri stepped forward and joined them, only for his body to freeze. 

What if he hit someone? What if he killed someone, or worse, hurt one of the raiding felidae? He could feel the cold sweat on his cheeks. 

A guard started to turn at Victor, sword raised behind Victor’s back. Yuuri felt a strangled scream in his throat, and he lurched to life like a bolt of lighting. His arm whipped back without a thought. 

The guard recoiled as the arrow sank into his shoulder, and Victor cleaved into the human, taking advantage of the distraction. He whipped his head back, spotting Yuuri amidst the archers. His eyes went wide. 

Another guard appeared behind Victor. The mindless drive to _ protect Victor, keep him safe _buzzed in his mind, and he hurried to fire. The arrow sunk deep into the guard’s chest. Victor’s head followed Yuuri as he ran. Yuuri quick-fired arrows as fast as he could, joining in the volleys and picking out guards and anyone who raised a hand to Victor. 

Victor broke off, weaving his way through the crowds. Yuuri almost lost him several times, but the beautiful silver head of hair and pricked silver ears made him stand out enough to pluck from the mass of humans. A throng of omegas followed his tail, freeing one another from their shackles.

It was madness. Yuuri lost all his sense of self. There was only Victor, _ Victor, _keeping Victor safe from harm. 

The smoke obscured the worst of the fighting, and for a tense moment, Victor vanished completely before reappearing like a ghost beside more omega cages. 

It felt like hours later when Yuuri reached for arrows that weren’t there. He fumbled in the quiver for more, and finally seemed to awaken from the reverie he’d found himself in. The retreat was sounded. 

The other archers turned tail and bolted for the carriages. Yuuri snagged one of their quivers as they ran, and he fired as he jogged backwards, trying to pick off the guards pursuing Victor. 

He was breathing hard, his arms shaking with exhaustion as he made it to the carriages. Victor grabbed him. 

“What are you doing here?” Victor hissed. His eyes were wide and full of fear. 

“I came to cover _ you,” _Yuuri said fiercely. 

Someone grabbed Victor by the shoulder. Chris. “We have to leave now,” he said intensely. Victor threw Yuuri one last pained glance. Yuuri broke away, loading into a carriage with a large cluster of omegas. Space quickly ran out, and looking as though he’d been slapped, Victor seated himself inside another. 

A sourness lodged itself in Yuuri’s throat. The omegas tittered excitedly, some of them in shock but others looking more alive than they’d probably ever been. Yuuri couldn’t move the entire trip to the waypoint. He didn’t leave the carriage when the omegas stepped out to stretch their legs. 

Yuuri stepped out, not entirely sure what he was doing. Victor was counting out heads, looking like he could barely stand. Yuuri stormed up to him, jabbing a finger. “You could have been hurt!” he said. “I thought you said you needed to rest after using your magic!”

“Yuuri,” Victor breathed. The horror and shock of before must have faded during the carriage ride. “You’re safe. I’m just glad you’re alive. Why did you come along? How did you find out we were leaving?”

“Chris told me,” Yuuri snapped. “I wanted to keep _ you _ safe. Do you know what it would do to this place if you got yourself killed? What I would do?” Yuuri broke off, realizing what he said. His eyes burned. 

Victor’s expression softened. “You were scared,” Victor realized. “Not for yourself, but… for me?”

“Yes, you idiot!” Yuuri said. Tears slipped hot and salty down his cheeks. “I was scared something would happen. I don’t care what happens to me, but you can’t get hurt! Why didn’t you just tell me? I could have come with you without having to hide.”

“I… I’m sorry Yuuri. I was scared, too.” Yuuri could see the truth shining in his eyes. 

Yuuri let out a shocked little laugh though the tears. “You were scared? Of what? I don’t want to be a hindrance, Victor. If there’s something I can do to help, I want to be there.”

“I was scared I’d lose you,” Victor breathed. “I was scared you would get hurt, or captured, or worse.”

“Everyone else faces those same risks, Victor! If I mess up, it’s on me, not you. I don’t see what the problem is! Why are you so mad? I have to do this, I just have to!”

“But you don’t!” Victor said desperately. 

“Why are you so against it?” Yuuri said. “Is it because I’m an omega, or because you’re scared I’ll run away, or because-”

“I can’t- I can’t lose you,” Victor whispered. It was like all the air came out of him, and he deflated. “If you’d gotten hurt, if I wasn’t able to keep you safe… I wouldn’t be able to live with myself.”

“I’m not scared,” Yuuri insisted. 

“I am,” Victor said. “I’m- I’m terrified. I’ve never been so scared before, just thinking that you might get shot or stabbed or worse. I don’t want anyone getting hurt, I don’t, but when I think about you on the other end of a sword, I just… I can’t take it, Yuuri.”

The words seemed to ring hollowly in his ears, almost like he couldn’t hear them. “I don’t understand,” Yuuri said. His heart hammered in his chest. Victor’s expression was pleading and desperate. “Victor, what do you mean?”

“I don’t want to see anything happen to you. That’s why I worried so much when I saw you. I was so, so scared.”

Yuuri’s eyes burned. Messy tears spilled down his cheeks. “You think I can sit in camp, knowing you’re exhausted and run down from using so much magic, running into danger? Especially when there’s something I can do to keep you safe? I know I’m not the best shot in camp but there has to be some good I’m doing.”

Victor let out a little sound of surprise. “Not the best- Yuuri, you’re an amazing shot. You did fantastic today, and honestly, I’m proud of what you did. I’m not worried about you not being enough of a help here. You’ve made that obvious enough. I don’t want to bring anyone who doesn’t know what they’re getting into.”

“And I don’t?” Yuuri asked. 

“If they captured you, they wouldn’t just throw you back into the markets. They’d interrogate you, find out who helped you and where you were while you were free. They’d- they’d hurt you, Yuuri. I’m not stupid. I know your time as a slave hangs over you like a spector. I won’t let you put yourself in a place where you could be recaptured-”

“I’m aware of the risks,” Yuuri said firmly. “I won’t ever go back, and I won’t let them take me away. But I won’t stand here while there is something I can do to help! Send me away if I’m no good, at least I can understand that! But you said it yourself, that I can do this. So why am I any different from Chris or Phichit-”

“Because it is different!” Victor said. “I couldn’t- I would… I would be lost without you, Yuuri. And I know it was stupid of me to try and keep you safe-”

“I would have just come along anyway, clearly.” Yuuri crossed his arms. It was quiet for a moment. Victor took a slow breath. 

“That’s why I love you, Yuuri,” Victor said with a little smile. 

It came so suddenly, Yuuri almost thought he’d misheard. As it was, he was struck motionless. “W-what?”

“I’ve never felt like this for anyone before. It scares me, Yuuri, but it makes me feel alive. Even more than saving omegas, the thought of having you by my side makes me think there’s something more to life than spending my days in some quiet little village where nothing ever happens. I love you, Yuuri, and I’m not scared to say that. I’m not scared anymore to tell you how I feel.”

“I- I didn’t realize-” Yuuri stammered, his heart hammering in his chest. 

“You don’t have to reply,” Victor said. The hurt look in his eyes was cutting. “I’ve seen the way you act when I touch you.”

“It’s- it isn’t that!” Yuuri cried out. His voice dropped to a whisper. “I just... didn’t know you felt the same…” 

Victor’s eyes were big and blue and wide. “You… you love me too?”

“Yes,” Yuuri said in a tiny voice. “I thought I was just being selfish and greedy. I didn’t want to admit it because I thought it would scare you away. Because I was scared.”

Victor’s eyes twinkled with palpable relief. He laughed, but it was such a bright sound, full of joy. “Yuuri, I don’t take just anyone to my special place by the lake and feed them berries.”

“We’re fools,” Yuuri said, almost in disbelief. “All this time and I could have just said it.”

“You can say it now,” Victor said. There was an edge of desperation. 

Yuuri swallowed down his fears. “I love you,” he whispered. Louder, he repeated, “I love you, I love you, and I won’t let you get hurt if I can help it.”

Victor reached slowly for him, so slowly that Yuuri could track every inch of distance closed between them. His body was tense. 

Memories flashed in his mind, wild and tortuous. He remembered his time as a slave, of being taken without so much as a single consideration for his well being, his broken and battered body, his screaming mind. Victor touched his cheek, and Yuuri melted into it. 

This was different. This was Victor. 

And it wouldn’t make the pain and hurt go away, and Victor couldn’t erase the scars of his time as a slave, but he could be something to lean on. Victor didn’t pull back from Yuuri, even as Yuuri’s body began to tremble violently. 

“Is this okay?” Victor asked. 

Yuuri nodded, tears leaking down his cheeks. “Yes, yes, yes. Just… stay like this for a moment.”

He cupped his hand over Victor’s, feeling the warmth against his jaw. It was hard, but Yuuri had never wanted anything the way he wanted to hold onto Victor. 

He could see the devotion in Victor’s eyes. 

There was a feeling in his chest, like his heart was going to burst. Their lips met, the softest brush of skin, so faint that Yuuri wondered if he imagined it. And Victor pulled back, expression achingly soft, ears laid back against his skull. “Too much?” Victor breathed. “Stop me if I’m going too far.”

Yuuri’s chest rumbled with a thick purr. “Just… just like this,” he whispered. “Just for now, stay by my side like this.”

“I love you, Yuuri,” Victor said again, like he couldn’t believe the words were coming from his own lips. “I love you so much I can barely stand it.”

Yuuri’s lips twitched. “I still think I love you more.” 

But time was short, and so they ushered the newly freed omegas into the assembled carriages. Victor adamantly refused to sit apart from Yuuri, and for Yuuri’s part, he was content to sit side by side with Victor, purring like an idiot for the entirety of the drive home. 

Exhaustion seemed to take its toll on them both. Yuuri woke up some hours later back at camp, Victor firmly asleep on his shoulder, their tails wound around one another and their fingers laced together. 

The smooth porcelain of Victor’s forehead proved too tempting by half, and Yuuri leaned slowly forward, half expecting Victor to startle awake and stop him. But Victor slept on, face slackened by sleep and more vulnerable and young than Yuuri had ever seen it. 

Yuuri pressed a hesitating kiss to Victor’s temple. Blue eyes fluttered slowly open, as though lifted from a spell. “Yuuri… you’re still with me?” he asked, voice rough. The carriage was emptying slowly, leaving the pair of them alone. 

“If you say this was all a dream, I’m going to be very cross,” Yuuri teased softly. Victor smiled, squeezing Yuuri’s hand. 

“Not a dream. But it feels like it. And I don’t ever want to wake up if that’s the case.”

Yuuri took a breath, steadying his racing heart. “Then let’s never wake up, okay?” He offered Victor a smile. “And anyway, we’ve got to make up for all that time we lost being idiots.”

“Can we start now?” Victor asked. He glanced out at the “Move in with me. I know that the community center is cramped, and it’ll be even more so now that we have new arrivals. There are a few houses that are nearly finished, but…”

“I honestly don’t know what I would do with an empty house,” Yuuri confided. “And… there are people who need them more.” He grinned and he laced his fingers through with Victor’s, giving his hand a gentle squeeze. “Sharing with you sounds wonderful, if… if you’ll have me?” Yuuri asked. 

Victor let out a sound of tired joy. “How soon can you move in?”

“Uh, just as long as it would take to grab my things, I think?” Yuuri said. Victor’s eyes seemed to sparkle. 

“Wonderful. Let yourself in, if you like. I’m going to head back once I finish here.”

As it turned out, it took no time at all for Yuuri to gather his meager belongings from the space around his bed. His possessions were few enough over the months he had been here, starting from nothing and taking joy in the simple existence of life here. He packed his clothes and things into a basket and that was that. 

Omegas were streaming into the center now, led by Phichit, who gave Yuuri a questioning look as he marched past. _ Later_, Yuuri mouthed, over the heads of a gaggle of unpresented felid children. Phichit looked unconvinced, but Yuuri sidestepped his attention and slipped out the door, taking a breath. 

Was he crazy? Perhaps. Did he regret this? Absolutely not. As wild, crazy, and ridiculous as it seemed, Victor wanted _ him_. Now it was Yuuri’s turn to prove he was worthy of Victor’s attention. He took one last breath, steadying his nerves before marching toward the house on the hill. 

Compared to the mansions of Yuuri’s old masters, it was more akin to a shack, all things considered. It was a simple building, larger perhaps than most other houses near it, but not by any significant amount. The walls were unadorned save for a few carved decorations that were worn down from decades of wind and sun, and a few rogue patches of flowers sprung up from beds on either side of the door. 

The wind caught through the air as Yuuri approached the door. He could smell the blooms from here, but there was another scent on the air as well— the sweet, floral, woodsy aroma of Victor’s warm, alpha scent. It permeated the home, filled every inch with fragrance and marked it as _ owned_. 

He braced the basket on his hip and opened the door cautiously. Yuuri couldn’t smell any fresh scent inside, and so he assumed Victor had not yet returned. Though he tried to cast a quick glance back down the way, Victor couldn’t been seen from here. Yuuri dipped his head and made his way inside. 

It was tidy and neat within, the fireplace swept clean of cinders and the floors lined with plush rugs. Every inch of it smelled like Victor, so much that it left Yuuri purring. He set the basket on a table beside the door and stretched out on the floor. 

He was exhausted, and it hit him suddenly, hard and fast enough that he could barely keep his eyes open. He was out like a light.

It seemed to be only a blink of time, but Yuuri’s eyes opened hazily to find the shadows had moved across the room, and Victor snuggly curled up beside him, their noses alighted and foreheads touching. 

Victor’s face was soft with sleep. Though it set his heart racing, Yuuri didn’t move away. He had never been so close to anyone before. 

Even when his old masters would force him between their sheets, it was always with the expectation that they’d shove him away when they’d left Yuuri sullied and sore. Cuddling was for their spouses. Slaves were just for sex. 

But this… this was nice. Yuuri had never been allowed this before. He’d never _ wanted _ something like this. There had never been someone who made him want to give this part of himself to. 

He brushed Victor’s hair back from his face, stroking the soft, pointed silver ears and listening to the purring that rumbled from Victor’s chest. Something tender unfolded in his chest. 

“Victor…” he murmured. He waited for Victor’s eyes to flutter heavily. “Victor. You should sleep in your bed.”

In answer, Victor made a sleepy sound of protest and flung his arm over Yuuri’s body. “No,” Victor said.

“It’ll be more comfortable,” Yuuri murmured, trying to persuade rather than admonish. 

Victor made another sound of protest. “I’m… going to stay with you…” Victor said softly. His eyelids were growing heavy again, refusing to open. Victor’s soft little snores filled the air again. Yuuri’s heart hurt. 

“I’ll come with you if you go to bed,” Yuuri offered. He unfolded himself carefully from Victor’s grasp, leaving Victor in a sulky pile on the floor. Victor groaned and shambled to his feet, acting like his limbs each weighed a ton or more. He leaned against Yuuri, throwing his weight around. 

Yuuri staggered, but managed to maneuver Victor into the bedroom in the back. Victor was asleep again when his head hit the pillow. Yuuri couldn’t quite hold back a smile. He stepped out, tiptoeing to find a glass to fill with water. A pail of fresh well water had been left outside the door, and Yuuri used it to quench the dry patches in his throat. 

It made sense. If Victor did this often, collapsing into an exhausted state after using his magic, someone would need to at least make sure he had water and food. For all Victor did in the name of freeing omegas, it seemed like a small token of repayment. 

Yuuri filled another glass and returned to Victor’s side, rousing Victor enough to entice him to drink. He was sickly pale, and the veins on his neck were standing prominently under the skin, pulsing black with corrupted magic. 

Yuuri traced the line with his finger. Victor grabbed Yuuri’s hand and kissed the tips of his fingers. “Not as bad as it looks. Sleep,” Victor mumbled. 

Yuuri shed his dusty clothes and crawled into the large feather bed. He was soon asleep once more. 

It was the quiet moments, Yuuri realized in the morning, that set Victor apart from his old masters. There was an unspoken trust. There was freedom, yes, but also the promise of the future that Yuuri felt comfortable relying on. 

Yuuri had never seen a future for himself. Never, not until the day Victor swept into his life. Felidae simply didn’t get a happy ending. But with Victor and Yuuri’s hands entwined, their tails curled around one another’s, Yuuri could see the future he had never imagined before. 

Victor spent most of the first three days sleeping the entirety of the day. Yuuri brought him water in the few moments of wakefulness, and made sure he ate some of the soft bread, cured meat, and cheese that was left in a basket outside the door. Victor was quick to fall back asleep after that, still so tired he could barely lift his head. 

It was strange to see the devastation wrought on Victor's body, and perhaps it was so much worse for Victor’s lack of recovery the previous time. But he seemed to sleep better when he knew Yuuri was there, and the rest he was getting helped him recover monumentally. By day four, a little bit of his old color was creeping back into his cheeks. He was also able to sit upright for short spells.

During those moments of wakefulness, Victor and Yuuri just talked, the way they had in times before. Yuuri thought it would be stilted or awkward now. But whatever passed between them was always natural, with even the quiet moments feeling contemplative, rather than stressful. 

Companionship made Victor sparkle, though his light was still tired. Victor was sitting upright in the bed now. There was a drowsiness to him, but he held his head up well enough. Their hands were laced, and Victor rubbed circles into Yuuri’s hands with his thumbs. 

“You used to shy away from my touch. I remember the first time I tried, and you screamed bloody murder.”

“You surprised me!” Yuuri said hastily. 

“You flinch, though, even now. At first, I thought it was just me. But it’s everyone, isn’t it?”

Yuuri looked away. “It’s better and worse. Sometimes I feel fine, like I can do anything. Like I can’t be hurt anymore. Sometimes… I feel like… it’s almost as though I had gotten used to being used as a plaything, and I had convinced myself there was nothing in life beyond that. And now that I’ve tasted freedom, my eyes were opened. And it scares me more than ever, thinking I might have to go back.”

“I was scared for a time that you’d run away from me. Go back of your own volition.”

“I’d never,” Yuuri said fiercely. 

“I see that now,” Victor said hastily. “I mean, back then, in the early days of your stay. It was a constant fear. I was always afraid people would run away, but you most of all. I was scared you would rather face that predictability than the unknown of life out here. Now I’m just… scared that they’ll take you from me.”

“They’d die trying,” Yuuri said with a scowl. “I won’t go back, dead or alive. I wasn’t lying when I said that it scares me, but… I have something precious here.” His gaze softened as he looked at Victor’s face. 

“As do I,” Victor said warmly. 

In the quiet, there was peace. Yuuri brought food to the bed. They enjoyed their supper together. 

“I still remember the way they touched me,” Yuuri whispered. “My fear, it made it better for them. They liked how I smelled when I was scared. They liked how I fought them. They fed me so little food, I didn’t stand a chance of resisting.”

“I’m so so sorry, Yuuri. That’s just… horrible,” Victor said, and the shock and disgust on his face was plain as day. “They’re monsters.”

“Do you want to touch me?” Yuuri asked. 

Victor froze. “What? Yuuri, I wouldn’t- I could never-”

“I’m not asking if you would or wouldn’t.” Yuuri looked away. “I know… Alphas have certain desires, regardless of whether they are felid or human. I’m asking if you have ever wanted to touch me. If you’ve ever looked at my throat and wanted to bite me, make me yours.”

“I- Yuuri, this doesn’t seem fair. Yes, I have wanted to, more than once. But I would never-”

“I want to give myself to you,” Yuuri said quietly. “I want you to bite my throat and bond me. And in the same breath that I think this, I feel fear, that you might hurt me. But also in that breath, I know you never would. It’s silly, isn’t it?”

“Not silly,” Victor breathed. “The scars from the humans, they don’t go away with a kiss.”

“Love isn’t a magic spell to make this better,” Yuuri said. “I know this. But it does make me want to try. It makes me want to face my fears. I want…” His voice cracked. “I want… to mate with you someday, if you want that too. And I don’t want to let the scars stop me from what I want.”

“Whatever you need, I’m yours,” Victor said. His eyes fluttered as he fought against sleep. “Whatever your desires may be, I promise I will fight to protect them. Yuuri, I love you more than I can ever say. Let me help you fight them.”

“I’m not good at accepting help,” Yuuri said with a half smile. “But somehow, you’re always the exception.” He stroked Victor’s hair and listened to him purr. 

“Tell me when you want.”

“I want you to feel better, first,” Yuuri said fondly. “Rest, and worry about me later.”

“I don’t worry about you,” Victor muttered, already falling asleep. “I trust… you…”

Yuuri tucked him into bed. He stretched and stood, knowing Victor would be out for a few hours more. The innocence on Victor’s face made appear him more vulnerable than he did in wakefulness. It softened him. The stirring Yuuri felt in his heart told him nothing he didn’t already know. He loved Victor, more than he could put into words. 

It took time for Victor to recover. 

Yuuri had assumed it would be about a week until Victor was back on his feet, but in practice, it proved to be closer to two. However, it didn’t take long for Victor to grow bored of his convalescence and for his part, it at least made for a wonderful chance to talk. 

Victor and Yuuri sat shoulder to shoulder, occasionally taking the stairs one hobbling step at a time up to the rooftop overlook, where to chairs were pulled up to study the stars or watch the clouds race by. 

From the view on Victor’s hilltop home, Yuuri could see nearly all of the village sprawling out around them. “I really love it here,” he said softly. “It feels more like home than any place I’ve ever known.”

“You have no idea how happy it makes me to hear that,” Victor said warmly. “But… also sad. Did you not have a home before you were taken away?”

“I spent most of my life as a slave,” Yuuri said with a shrug. It was all he’d ever known, really. “I know I had parents, and I think I remember having a sister, but I don’t remember them much. I remember they cared about me a lot, though. Maybe I’ll meet them again someday.”

“I hope I can give that to you, too.” Yuuri smiled, and he pressed a soft kiss to Victor’s temple. The shocked look on Victor’s face made it worth it. 

When Victor could walk unaided once more, he was back to business as usual. No mention was made of their agreement, but Yuuri knew something had changed. Yuuri had changed, and so had Victor. They walked along dirt paths dappled in shadow and sunlight, and when Victor reached for Yuuri’s hand, Yuuri took it with only a slight tremble. 

It took days and weeks to grow from brushes to touches, to go from holding hands to lacing their fingers together in a more intimate way. It was different with Victor. But Victor made everything seem easier. And when the time came, when Yuuri and Victor went to bed each night, Yuuri knew he was getting stronger. 

One night, as he dressed in the soft night shirt and trousers that he always wore to sleep, he stared at the empty bed where Victor would soon settle into. The scent of desire flitted through the air most nights when Yuuri settled beside him. 

Victor swore he would take nothing that wasn’t freely given, and thus far, Yuuri had yet to test just how far it would go. But Yuuri wasn’t a fool. Though Victor restrained himself, alphas were simple enough in their desires. The scents that filled the air when they were aroused, they were obvious enough to any omega no matter how old or freshly presented. 

Yuuri could often smell Victor’s arousal, the same way he could smell fresh pastries being prepared at the inn in the mornings. It was an intoxicating kind of pleasure, something that seeped into his blood and bones and made him _ want_. In spite of Victor’s hesitance, and perhaps due to it, Yuuri wanted more than Victor ever gave him, and Yuuri finally felt ready to face it. 

With a soft smile, Yuuri dressed in only the soft shirt, leaving the trousers in the dresser where he’d found them. He turned to the bed, settling himself in the dimly lit room, leaving just a single candle lit on the bedside table. 

Victor returned with his hair wet from his bath, drying himself off while he hummed a song. Yuuri let out a soft purr. “Victor…”

Victor smiled. “Yuuri, my love, are you ready to sleep?”

“Hmmm, not quite yet,” Yuuri said. He bit his lower lip, already feeling an edge of nerves. He’d never seduced anyone before, but the theory seemed sound enough. “I’ve been waiting for you.”

“Sorry, I was distracted on my way back. Chris had a question about pushing through production of more arrows and-” he continued on, chattering about his plans for tomorrow. Victor seemed utterly oblivious. He pulled on a pair of soft trousers from his dresser as he readied himself for bed. 

Yuuri huffed. He rolled onto his side, pulling the covers back to expose the length of his thigh. A faint bit of alarm raced through him, despite his best efforts to hold it back. He closed his eyes while he ran a hand down his leg. “Victor…” he breathed. “I know you want to… mate with me, right? I’m ready, you know. You can touch me if you want.”

Victor froze. Finally, he looked at Yuuri, actually _ looked_, and he saw Yuuri waiting for him. The scent of Victor’s arousal flooded the room. Yuuri could see the way his ears went back flat against his skull, his eyes wide in shock. “Yuuri…” Victor murmured. He took a halting step closer. “Are you sure?”

“More sure than anything.”

“Say the word, and I’ll stop. I swear to you, I’ll do nothing you don’t want me to do.”

“I know,” Yuuri said. And he did. His stupid brain would forget, but his heart knew that better than anyone else. “Do with me as you will.”

“I will try,” Victor said solemnly. He crawled into bed beside Yuuri, running his fingers through Yuuri’s hair to stroke the soft, pointed ears. Yuuri couldn’t help but purr. 

He didn’t know quite what he expected. Perhaps for Victor to follow the footsteps of previous masters, to hold Yuuri to the bed and take his pleasure from Yuuri’s body. But this was Victor, not the previous masters, and if Yuuri knew anything it all, it was that Victor treated everything he cared about with the same measure of respect and care. 

Yuuri didn’t have to fear being left broken and bleeding on a bed. 

Still, he hadn’t expected this: Victor bowed his head above Yuuri’s, craning his neck down to press his lips to Yuuri’s. The gentle purring rumbled between them. It was more tender than Yuuri had expected, and he found himself hungering for more. 

He gently parted his lips, trying to entice Victor into twining their tongues together, but it was a fruitless effort. It clutched at his heart. Yuuri pulled back, unable to breathe. The hurt was written all over his face. “Do you… not want me?” Yuuri asked. 

Victor froze in place. “What? Why would you think that?”

“You’re treating me like a piece of glass,” Yuuri said. “I won’t break! I want you to enjoy yourself.”

Victor shook his head, smiling sadly. “Yuuri, I am enjoying myself. I don’t see the point in rushing things. We have forever together, don't we? All the time in the world. Most of all, treasuring you is what makes me happy. Knowing you’re enjoying it as much as I am? That’s what matters most to me.”

Yuuri felt his eyes grow hot, burning with unshed tears. “I’ll enjoy it all the more if I know you’re getting what you need from this. I don’t want to mate if it isn’t for your pleasure, too.” He was pouting, he knew he was, but he couldn’t bring himself to stop sulking, even when Victor kissed his cheeks and stroked his thumb over Yuuri’s jaw.

His every touch left goosebumps in its wake. “Then show me how you want me to please you,” Victor said, “and I will see to it that we both enjoy it to the fullest, okay? Do you trust me with this?”

Yuuri stared, but still said nothing. Challenging Victor, almost. Victor grinned. 

“You want me to kiss you, then?” Victor asked. 

“I do,” Yuuri said simply. He didn’t break eye contact with Victor, even as he tipped his head up to meet Victor’s lips once more. The first touch was hesitant and halting. Victor’s hands on his skin were like fire, scorching along every inch as they took their sweet time sliding up Yuuri’s thighs. 

He could feel Victor’s body laid against his, feel the pounding of their heartbeats pulsing through him and surrounding him. Yuuri tipped his chin up, guiding Victor into a deeper kiss, and finally, _ finally_, Victor followed him. Their lips parted with a sigh. 

Yuuri stifled a groan, letting it curl in his throat in a pleased purr. “Good?” Victor said quietly. With eyes closed, Yuuri nodded. It was slow, heated, the fire burning between them so intense Yuuri thought he might melt. 

His blood raced through his veins, carrying that heat all the way to the very tips of his fingers, flooding his body. He could feel the throbbing pulse under his skin. When he opened his eyes, he found Victor’s crystalline gaze. The world faded away, until it was just their breath fanning over their lips. The kisses slowed, parting with one last peck. 

Victor offered him a soft smile. “Hey there, beautiful, how do you feel?”

“Good,” Yuuri murmured. “Warm.” Victor laughed, bright as the full moon’s steady glow. The weight of Victor’s body felt comfortable for now. His scent kept Yuuri’s nerves at a manageable level. As long as Yuuri could smell the heady floral cedar and flowers, he hoped he’d be able to keep himself in check. 

“Was that how you wanted it?” Victor asked. Yuuri gave himself a second to check his fears, but he felt in control for now, and he gave a nod. 

He felt good, right now. The kiss was everything he’d dreamed of. “It was perfect.”

Victor hummed, pleased, and moved slowly as he gathered Yuuri’s hands in his own. “I’m glad. Still, let me know if we’re going too fast. This is for our mutual pleasure, my love. I refuse to use and discard you like your worthless ex-masters. You deserve much more than that.”

With fire in his gaze, Victor squeezed Yuuri’s hands. He softened his grip to rub circles with his thumbs over the palms. He ducked his head and pressed a kiss to every knuckle, letting out a pointed ‘mwah!’ each time, until Yuuri was squirming under him and giggling. 

“Victor! You’re ridiculous,” Yuuri said, shrieking with laughter as Victor’s kisses laced down his fingers, covering each tip with another peck. 

Victor peered up at Yuuri from beneath a silver fringe of hair. His eyes were dark. With little more than a whisper of his hair over Yuuri’s skin, his kisses moved lower. Victor pressed his lips firmly to Yuuri’s palms. His eyes flicked up again, measuring Yuuri’s reaction. 

Yuuri gave him a fond smile. “Enjoying yourself?”

“Quite,” Victor said into Yuuri’s skin. He lifted Yuuri’s hands. On the exposed skin of Yuuri’s wrists, he left more kisses, trailing along the veins under the skin, to the crook of Yuuri’s elbow, to where Yuuri’s sleeve began. He tugged Yuuri up with a smile. “I could kiss your skin all day.”

Yuuri flushed red, his cheeks hot and embarrassed, but quietly pleased. “Is that so?”

“It is. Seeing the way you flush so beautifully for me… it’s a dream come true. Can I take your shirt?”

Yuuri nodded, moving to grab the first button, but Victor squeezed his hands, offering Yuuri a smile. Victor started at the topmost button, undoing it and leaving a kiss over the newly exposed skin. 

He worked his way down, button by button, pecking another kiss on every inch of skin and leaving goosebumps in his wake. Yuuri let out a soft sigh as Victor traveled lower and lower with each new button, until the soft sleep shirt hung loose and open over Yuuri’s chest. His eyes fluttered closed.

Victor placed his palms flat to Yuuri’s chest, and he moved his hands upward with a careful deliberateness. Yuuri’s head fell back, his breath lingering on his lips as Victor guided the fabric over his shoulders, kissing away the last touch of cloth. His kisses remained on Yuuri’s shoulders. 

The skin under Victor’s lips seemed to tingle. Yuuri felt a shiver race down his spine, coiling in his gut and making his tail curl. He brought his hands up to stroke Victor’s hair. Those pointed silver ears trembled faintly, but the strands of silvery hair were painfully soft. Yuuri purred gently as Victor lifted his head. 

Yuuri opened his eyes. Victor’s gaze returned to him, clear as crystal, dark with pleasure but glittering brightly. A low whine slipped from Yuuri’s throat before he could stop it.

“Bad? Should I stop?” Victor breathed. 

Yuuri shook his head. “No, it’s… it’s fine,” he said. He found himself smiling. “I’ve just… never been treated so softly before.”

“I like the thought of spoiling you,” Victor crooned. When both were sufficiently nude, he guided Yuuri onto his back on the bed. Victor laid down beside him, their faces only a few inches apart. “I’ve been thinking… I don’t want to take this too fast, but I want to do something to give us both pleasure. Will you indulge me?”

“Depends on what it is you want,” Yuuri said coyly. He smiled, already knowing just how far he would go for this man laying across from him, all the things he would do if only Victor said the word. 

“Straddle my hips,” Victor said. 

Yuuri gave him a confused look, but slowly sat back up once more, letting Victor guide him into a seated position on Victor’s thighs. Their fingers were laced together, and Yuuri carefully tucked his legs in close to Victor’s body for balance. “Like this?”

“Just like this,” Victor agreed. He reached for the drawer beside the bed, just barely grazing it with his fingers enough to pull it open. He dug inside for a moment before withdrawing a small crystal flask of oil. Yuuri cocked his head. “I know you’re an omega, but for what I was thinking, this will make it a bit easer, at least to start.”

Victor anointed his hand until it gleamed faintly, and he reached between them, guiding Yuuri to shimmy his pelvis forward until their cocks were aligned. Yuuri’s omega cock seemed small in comparison to the length and girth of Victor’s prodigious… endowment. With his gleaming hand, Victor reached between them, taking them both in hand. 

Yuuri’s breath hitched faintly. The sudden warmth surprised him. Masters never showed any sort of regard for Yuuri’s pleasure, and the touch was as alien as it was nice. 

Surprisingly so, with Yuuri letting out a sharp gasp with the first stroke. “Vi-Victor!” he cried out. His right hand was still laced through Victor’s fingers, and he squeezed it hard, head falling back as Victor began to work them into a steady rhythm. 

“Does that feel good?” Victor groaned. His head was rolling like a possessed thing, his pleasure unable to be contained in just the sounds of his grunt and gasps and pleased cries. Yuuri couldn’t hold himself still. His hips pitched forward.

Between his legs, he felt something wet and slick begin to flow, bringing with it a wave of something hot and delicious coiling up his body. He shuddered with his whole body. “Victor- I think- something’s wrong- wait-”

Victor’s hand slowed. He was breathing hard as he looked at Yuuri, almost panicked with his wide, puppyish eyes. “What’s wrong? Did I do something you didn’t like?”

Yuuri winced, squirming again as the hot wetness seemed to drip out of him, coating Victor’s legs in more of that slickness. “Something’s… coming out.”

Victor went still, and his eyes started to sparkle. “Oh, Yuuri, my love, my beautiful, beautiful Yuuri,” he said with a laugh. Yuuri puffed up. 

“It’s not funny!” Yuuri yelped, rising onto his knees. He gently prodded himself, but there was no pain accompanying the slickness on his thighs, nothing red when Yuuri pulled his fingers away from the entrance which his masters would breach. 

There was only gleaming, almost clear white fluid clinging between his fingers, webbing them together. He was producing slick. He was producing slick, for the first time in his life. 

“This hasn’t ever happened- It’s usually red-”

“Never?” Victor said in a hushed tone. “I know the masters would mistreat you, but… you truly never-”

“Never,” Yuuri confirmed, staring in awe. Victor leaned forward, and he pulled Yuuri’s fingers into his mouth, sucking the slick off like it was the juice from a berry. Yuuri yanked his hand back, scandalized. “That’s- Victor- don’t eat that-!”

“Why not?” Victor said, licking his lips. “It comes from you, Yuuri. It tastes as good as it smells to me. An omega’s slick is like sweet honey to an alpha. You smell absolutely intoxicating right now. You’re always irresistible, Yuuri, but your slick makes it so hard to control myself.”

Yuuri’s attention caught. “Does it… Does it make it hurt less?” He turned his eyes to Victor, more unsure now than frightened. Victor seemed largely unconcerned with the fluid now covering his legs in smooth wetness. Perhaps he liked smelling like an omega’s slick. 

“Does it make… ah… penetrating you... hurt less?” Victor said delicately. Yuuri nodded. “Well, it shouldn’t hurt you much at all. There might be a little pain at first, but there shouldn’t be blood!” Victor looked horrified at the thought. 

Yuuri sat back, feeling the receding heat in his stomach. When he squirmed his hips, he found a strange throbbing between his legs that only grew more intense when he ground himself against Victor’s legs. The entrance between his legs seemed to be the source of it, and Yuuri cautiously reached between his thighs.

He pressed his fingers to the sides of his entrance. A sudden gasp ripped through him with the first touch. “It feels good?” he said, more surprised by that simple fact than anything else now. 

“It- it can,” Victor sputtered. “If it bothers you, though, I don’t think we need to-”

Victor’s hands weighed on his hips, dredging up uncomfortable memories better left forgotten. But Yuuri wasn’t trapped. He closed his eyes, trying to stop the way his breath was threatening to spiral out of his control. 

At last, Yuuri nodded his head. “I want to overwrite their touch. Every last thing they’ve done to me. I want to overwrite it all,” Yuuri said. Fire burned in his eyes, determination gleaming. “I want you to take me and show me that I don’t have to be scared.”

Victor at last nodded. “If you’re certain. Let me know if it’s ever too much, we can slow down. You don’t have to torture yourself.” The last part was said with a serious look, like he was daring Yuuri to argue. 

Yuuri held his breath. He wanted everything gone, every last memory and feeling and fear. And it wouldn’t go away just from Victor fucking him, but it gave him a chance to let the fears go. Confront them. 

For once, Victor looked uncertain. “How do you… want to do this?”

“Um…” Yuuri considered his choices. He was often thrown on his hands and knees and taken from behind, but the thought of going through this without seeing Victor’s face was downright unbearable.

Yuuri closed his eyes and he nodded to himself, choice made. Victor waited patiently all the while. 

Yuuri let out a tiny grunt as he rolled off Victor’s thighs, laying on his back. “Like this,” he said. “Facing each other. If that’s… okay?”

Victor smiled. “That's more than okay. I’m going to get a little bit more lubricant, but hopefully by the time we’re both ready, we won’t need it, okay?”

Yuuri nodded. He held his breath and parted his legs, feeling shameless and exposed. The pale expanse of his thighs sprawled over the sheets. Victor indulged in a bit of shameless staring. It didn’t leave Yuuri feeling uncomfortable, like the roving eyes of his masters. 

This was different. Victor was different. Instead of looking at Yuuri and seeing a possession, Victor looked at Yuuri like… almost like he was something to be worshiped. Something he treasured. Yuuri didn’t feel like he’d earned that feeling, but Victor seemed to be of the opinion he did. 

Yuuri would just have to endeavour to earn that misplaced cherishment. His breath caught in his throat at Victor’s first touch, a dry hand stroking down one silky thigh. The touch left a trail of goosebumps in its wake. Yuuri sucked in a shaky breath. 

Victor groaned low in his throat. His ears were twitching on his head, desire visible in the dilation of his pupils. Yuuri preened. He had done this to Victor with nothing but a breath. He tipped his head back, and it was easier than he expected to bare himself to Victor like this. 

There was something pure in Victor’s eyes. Pure pleasure, pure _ love_. It steadied the nervous fear in Yuuri’s heart. Victor’s touch trailed up his legs. He pressed a kiss to Yuuri’s knee, to the inside of his thigh, creeping slowly up.

Yuuri clutched at the sheet. His cock was hard on his stomach, the tip drooling droplets of milky precum. Victor ignored it as his kissed up Yuuri’s hip, traveling his way to Yuuri’s stomach and down to his navel. The soft press of his lips was like velvet on Yuuri’s body. 

The pulse in his lower half returned. “Victor!” he gasped. More of the slick was beginning to leak from his body, and Victor let out a pleased purr. 

“You’re doing great, Yuuri. I’m proud of you.”

The fear was still there, clawing at the outskirts of Yuuri’s mind, but Victor’s kisses soothed their ragged edges. “I love you,” Yuuri breathed, closing his eyes. Victor froze in place, and Yuuri could feel him smile against Yuuri’s soft abdomen. 

“And I love you, my beautiful Yuuri. My precious,” a kiss, “beautiful,” another kiss, “brave,” and another, “stunning Yuuri.” Yuuri groaned low in his throat. His tail curled out around Victor’s wrist, holding it close to where it rested on his thigh. The fingers painted lazy circles on the skin. 

Another pulse, another slow drip of slick. It felt absolutely filthy, and Yuuri quite liked the feeling. It felt like his body agreed with his mind, for once, agreed with his heart. Every fiber of his being wanted to cleanse himself of the memories that had plagued him for too long. A low shiver rocked his body.

He had to fight to hold his legs open and apart for Victor. A rush of nervous energy sent his thighs spasming. His hands fluttered, as though he needed to cover himself up. 

Victor took his wrists in his hands, and he kissed the palms. “It’s okay, Yuuri. I know you’re scared. We’ll take it slow.”

Yuuri grabbed one of Victor’s hands, and he pressed it to his lips. “I know, I know,” he breathed. He laced their fingers together and he pressed another kiss to the knuckles. “You can give me more.” He half opened his eyes, looking down at Victor through trembling lashes. 

A full bodied shudder rocketed its way through Victor’s body, a fearsome groan of desire reverberating through every fiber of Victor’s being. Victor _ wanted this_, and that said more to Yuuri than words ever could. Their bodies were honest in ways their mouths could only dream of being. 

Victor’s kiss at last reached the core of Yuuri’s body, leaving a slow, lingering kiss to the weeping tip of Yuuri’s cock. He continued downward. His sweet kisses lingered at the base of Yuuri’s cock, down Yuuri’s body to the warm, silken heat of his entrance. 

When he pressed his mouth there, Yuuri let out a muffled scream. He barely covered it with their joined hands. The sudden rush of heat, the intimacy of Victor’s tongue slipping inside him, tasting the honey sweet slick like the most desireable treat imaginable. 

Victor’s kiss grew more intense, and Yuuri could barely hold back the muffled cries at the pleasure inside him. That tongue, that damned tongue, it pressed inside him with a soft, insistent pressure that the ex-masters cocks lacked. There was no pain, only fire, only bliss exploding within him. Yuuri let out a soft sob. 

“Victor,” he cried. His thighs trembled. Now, when they writhed, there was no self-preservation in mind. His body ached to pull Victor in deeper. He burned to sandwich Victor’s head between his legs, trap that sinfully sweet tongue inside his body and let it explore until Victor was content. 

Victor’s voice rose in pitch. The sounds became breathier, more desperate. His open-mouthed kisses grew more fervent, and Yuuri could smell his arousal on the air. Victor smelled so good, so alpha-like and _ hungry_.

Yuuri’s fingers knotted themselves into Victor’s soft, silver hair, pulling Victor off with a wet sucking sound. He struggled to catch his breath.

Victor smiled up between Yuuri’s thighs, a little dopey with pleasure, his lips and chin wet with slick. “Was it alright?”

“Too good,” Yuuri panted. His toes curled.into the sheets, just imagining Victor’s lips returning to their previous position. “I want… I want more. I want you inside me.”

A flicker of nervous fear caught in Victor’s eyes. “You’re certain?”

Yuuri nodded. He adjusted his legs, making certain they were open wide enough to take Victor between them. “I’m certain. This is what I want. And I know you want it, too,” Yuuri added with a shy smile. He glanced down between Victor’s legs at the stiff length of his erection. 

A human’s cock was not quite the same as a felid’s cock, even accounting for the difference between alphas and omegas. The shape itself was different, designed to pleasure a felid differently from a human. A felid’s knot was larger. Yuuri squirmed on the bed. 

“Wash away the memories of their touch. Make me forget. Make us feel good,” Yuuri ordered, beaming as Victor rose up onto his knees and pinned Yuuri to the bed with a look. 

Yuuri’s legs sprawled back, sandwiched between his and Victor’s chests. It was an ungainly sprawl, and yet the stretch felt good as Victor lined up. 

Two of Victor’s fingers pressed inside first. There was no pain, only pleasure that sent Yuuri’s head flying back with a startled moan. The slick stretch was sheer bliss, opening him up without the slightest spark of pain. Victor pumped his fingers a few times. Yuuri keened. He’d never felt anything inside him open him up with so little pain, so much focus on his own pleasure.

A third finger pressed inside, then a fourth when he was ready for it. As the fourth pressed inside, Yuuri felt the first spark of pain. His body locked up. Victor withdrew, and Yuuri took a few breaths to steady himself. “I’m fine,” Yuuri panted. “I was just startled. Please, keep going.”

Victor nodded. He took his cock in hand, and he slowly moved himself above Yuuri, taking a position so intimately close that Yuuri thought he could feel Victor’s heart beating out of his chest. In their closeness, Yuuri could scent Victor’s throat, breathing in the sweet scent of Victor’s arousal. 

The head pressed against his entrance and pushed inside. Hot and slick, his body accepted the first few inches easily, and Yuuri let out a sharp cry. His hands flew up to Victor’s hair. Fear ripped through him, wild and uncontrolled, and Yuuri sobbed, open and broken. His body clenched down hard, stalling Victor out.

“Shh, Yuuri, shh, it’s okay, I’m here, I’m here,” Victor whispered. He wiped the tears from Yuuri’s cheeks, kissing them away when there were too many to cleanse. “Shh, Yuuri, it’s just me. I’m here.”

“Victor,” Yuuri gasped. He forced his eyes open, meeting Victor’s gaze. Blue swam before his vision, blinding him. Everything blurred. In the hazy glow of blue and black, Yuuri’s sight started to clear. He wiped his eyes, caught his breath. His body was seizing around Victor’s cock, almost painfully tight. 

Victor was wincing.

“Are you alright, Yuuri? Do you want me to pull out?”

Yuuri shook his head. “No, no,” he gasped. “Just… give me as second. Just a second. I’m okay.” The memories of his previous masters were there, at the fringes of his mind. He would not let them ruin this. He would not let them take this away from him, away from _ them_. This was just him and Victor. 

The masters weren’t allowed here, in this sacred place in Victor’s bed, in the space between their bodies and hearts. Yuuri wouldn’t allow it.

He threw back his head, and he forced himself to breathe deep, until every part of his body began to lose some of the tension that strung him up. Fingers first, unweaving from Victor’s hair. It slipped from his shoulders, his spine, his hips. He wrapped his legs around Victor, holding him in place, ankles hooked together at the base of Victor’s spine. 

He could feel his body loosen the stranglehold it had on Victor’s cock, and at last, he looked back at Victor, nodding. “Take me,” he said. “Fill me up, Victor.”

Victor nodded, rocking his hips, and with a small push, he slipped a little deeper inside. The pain was surprising now, but not bad. It was like a little spark at the tip of his finger, not a bolt of lightning tearing him apart inside and out. 

It diffused, melted through him and spread like thick molasses into his core. At last, Victor was fully seated inside him, and Yuuri sucked in breaths of air until the soft trembling in his body was fully stilled. 

“Is this okay?” Victor breathed.

Yuuri nodded. A smile broke over his face, a little hazy, but firm enough. He cradled Victor’s cheek in his hand. “Better than okay. I can feel you inside me. It feels good.”

Victor bit his lip to stifle a groan. Yuuri could feel Victor’s cock twitch inside him. Victor pulled a little bit back, a little bit in, and Yuuri cried out, grinning at the feeling of reclaiming this part of himself. 

He let out a laugh, giddy. His masters tried to ruin him, but Yuuri was not so easily broken as that. “Is that all you’ve got?” Yuuri teased. A low flush crept down Victor’s chest. 

Emboldened, feeling more powerful than ever, Yuuri leaned into it, grinding his hips into Victor’s to create a new type of friction. It left stars dazzling his vision, left his head whirling with the sudden rush of blood, and he could see Victor was no less affected. 

It felt good. He could become addicted to this feeling, he realized, helpless as his hips pumped against Victor’s. What if they stayed in bed forever, curling around each other and savoring this feeling for eternity? 

Victor started to fuck him in earnest, and the muffled cries grew louder and louder, less muffled, free as they ran their hands over whatever they could touch. 

But there was a world out there Yuuri could never forget. He had friends to protect, and omegas to save. And above all, he had Victor to watch out for, to keep from harm no matter what happened. 

With Victor, he had everything he had dreamed of. With Victor, he was free. In Victor’s bed, cock buried deep inside him, Yuuri felt like he was flying. Yuuri tilted his chin, capturing Victor in an eager kiss. 

Victor clutched at him. Their hands grew more fumbling, clutching at whatever they could reach between them. The pleasure was downright intoxicating. As the heady scents of their pheromones began to mix in the air, Victor let out a soft yowl, ears falling flat against his skull as his cock began to twitch. 

Yuuri could feel the liquid spill inside him, a knot catching at his rim. Victor tried to pull back, to stop it from sealing them together. Yuuri clenched Victor’s body close, locking his legs around Victor’s hips until the knot fully sealed their bodies together. 

Yuuri let out an anguished sob of pleasure as the fullness seemed to grow more intense. The knot seemed to split his body open, the pain secondary to all the pleasure that came from their closeness. Victor came so much. Yuuri wondered if his stomach would ache from being so full. 

All the while, he could feel himself curling inward on himself. “My beautiful, beautiful Yuuri,” Victor purred. “Let it out. Come for me, come for me.”

It seemed to start low, then explode outward, a feeling like his body was no longer his own, his mind scattered amongst the stars. His hips went wild, tugging at the knot at his rim. His hand jerked, frantically milking himself of every last drop his body had to give. 

When it finished, he dropped, exhausted, back onto the bed, and Victor collapsed on top of him, barely rolling their bodies to the side to find a comfortable position to lie. Their bodies were stuck together, and would be for some time. Yuuri was more than happy with that, purring low, nuzzling into Victor’s chest and too tired to stir beyond that. 

“So that’s how it can feel,” Yuuri murmured to himself. Victor smiled sleepily. “I love you,” Yuuri murmured. “So much, sometimes I feel like it hurts. But a good kind of hurt, like when you’re inside me. I like it.”

Victor was almost asleep, and his mumbled reply came so quietly that Yuuri nearly missed it. “I’m glad. I love you, Yuuri.” Yuuri smiled back. 

His head dropped, and he soon fell asleep, dreaming of open lakes and berry bushes, of sugar sweet kisses and freedom just as sweet. Yuuri could say without any doubts or reservations about the future— he was happy. And that was enough. 


End file.
